Category: CEO

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Be Proud Of The Past But Look To The Future

In Charles Dickens’ “Christmas Carol,” Ebenezer Scrooge spends some quality time with the ghosts of Christmases Past, Present and Yet-to-Come.  Inspired by this holiday classic, and these decorative lights adorning Macy’s in New York City, today’s column mirror’s Dickens’ structure with three points on bank M&A, Capital One and Lending Club’s IPO..

Past: Three Bank M&A Deals You May Have Missed

Last week, my monthly M&A column posted on BankDirector.com (A Few Notable Deals You May Have Missed in 2014).  My premise: to successfully negotiate a merger transaction, buyers and sellers normally must bridge the gap between a number of financial, legal, accounting and social challenges. Couple this with significant barriers these days to acquiring another bank—such as gaining regulatory approval— and it’s no wonder that bigger financial deals remained scarce this year.

For as much digital ink as was spilled on BB&T Corp.’s $2.5-billion acquisition of Susquehanna Bancshares a few weeks ago, here are three deals worth noting from 2014: (1) Ford Financial plans to buy up to a 65 percent stake in Mechanics Bank, (2) Sterling Bancorp’s agreement to buy Hudson Valley and (3) United Bankshares completed acquisition of Virginia Commerce Bancorp.

Certainly, banking acquisitions like these three show a commitment to profitability and efficiency—and reflect solid asset quality and sound capital positions. There is more than one way to grow your bank and these banks are proving it.

Present: Catch the Digital Wave While You Can

A few days ago, the Washington Business Journal’s Mark Holan — @WBJHolan — wrote a very timely and relevant piece about Capital One’s Richard Fairbank, who says “the world won’t wait for banks to catch the digital wave.”  As Mark noted, Fairbank recently shared myriad thoughts at the Goldman Sachs U.S. Financial Services Conference in New York, opining:

“Banking is an inherently digital product… Money is digital. Banking is both about money and also about contracts about how money will be moved and managed. There is not a lot of physical inventory. This business is just crying out to be revolutionized and the world won’t wait.”

~Capital One’s CEO

Fairbank also cautioned the banking industry “has had a stunted and slowed evolution relative to the inherent nature of just how digital this product is” due to regulation, massive capital requirements, risk management issues, and other funding constraints.  He also said most banks are too focused on technology’s impact on physical branches or building the coolest app to satisfy customers.

Future: Why Lending Club’s IPO is Important

When it comes to financial innovation, many investors look outside the traditional banking space.  Take Lending Club, which touts itself as “America’s #1 credit marketplace, transforming banking to make it more efficient, transparent and consumer friendly. We operate at a lower cost than traditional bank loans and pass the savings on to borrowers in the form of lower rates and to investors in the form of solid returns.”  So I think their December 11th IPO on the NYSE is very important for bankers to take note of.

Much as Fairbank talks about transforming Capital One to match consumer’s digital demands, the firm stated in a pre-IPO filing that “borrowers are inadequately served by the current banking system.”  By positioning itself as the future of the lending business, it is not surprising to see entire columns dedicated to the the future of the company, as well as the future of the banking industry (see: The Death Of Banking: A LendingClub Story).  Feel free to draw your own conclusions, but certainly pay attention to upstart competitors like these.

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Giving Thanks for Great Leadership

We are getting close to that time of year when people start writing their top ten lists, providing year-in-review posts and taking out the proverbial crystal ball.  In this spirit, my post-Thanksgiving piece provides a list of bank CEOs I met this year that impressed me with both their bank’s performance & personal leadership styles.  From the outside looking in, I have to assume shareholders and employees alike appreciate what each has done for their organization.

A few days ago, David Reilly authored a piece in the Wall Street Journal entitled “Wanted: Dance Partners for Bank Merger Ball” (sorry, registration required).  Citing Bank Director’s annual M&A research report, he reminded us that it takes two to tango — and “that is still the issue for investors expecting, or hoping for, a significant pickup in bank merger activity in 2015.”  As we showed in our survey of about 200 bank directors and executives, 47% said they planned to purchase a healthy bank in the next 12 months — but 87% also said they had no intention to sell.  So a steady hand to lead an institution strikes me as imperative for those banks seeking growth through traditional, or acquisition-based, means.  This got me thinking…

Over the course of the year, I am lucky to meet Chief Executive Officers from all over the country.  To build on three posts from earlier this year (my “FI Tip Sheet: Some of Banking’s Best CEOs,” “FI Tip Sheet: Great Bank CEOs” and “FI Tip Sheet: The Top Women in Banking“) here, in no particular order, are nine community bank CEOs that made memorable impressions on me in 2014:

  • Jay Sidhu, the Chairman and CEO of Customers Bank, ran Sovereign Bank for nearly 20 years and started Customers Bank from scratch in ’97.  The bank has grown from its original five branches in the suburbs of Philadelphia to 14 offices in three states — Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey. Thanks to Jay’s disciplined approach to growth, Customers has seen its assets increase to $6.5 billion as of August 25.
  • Down in Texas, Scott Dueser, the Chairman, President & CEO at First Financial, embodies the concept of loyalty — to his employees, his customers and to the First Financial family as a whole (he’s been a part of it for more than 38 years).  Oh, and his bank placed first in the $5 billion to $50 billion asset category in Bank Director’s annual Bank Performance Scorecard — a ranking of the 200 largest publicly traded bank holding companies in the United States based on their 2013 financial data.
  • Up in RedSox country (sorry, CT might be a swing state between Yankees and RedSox fans, but the team from my home town is far superior), Bill Crawford leads United Financial Bancorp, the bank holding company for United Bank and Rockville Bank.  A $5 billion community bank founded in 1858 with 60 branches in New England, Bill’s determination to merge the two proverbial “equals” as seamlessly as possible reflects a real commitment to the combined teams, client bases and cultures.
  • Billed as the “bank for VCs and entrepreneurs,” Doug Bowers, the President & CEO at Square 1 Bank, oversees the NC-based bank with more then $1bn in assets.  As he shared, their focus on banking entrepreneurs and their investors is all that that they do.  Yes, it is 100% of their business.
  • Robin McGraw, embodies “intrapeneurship.”  The Chairman & CEO of Tupelo, MS-based Renasant Corporation, the parent of Renasant Bank, runs the 110-year-old financial services institution.  With approximately $5.8 billion in assets, Renasant operates more than 120 banking, mortgage, financial services and insurance offices in Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabama and Georgia. Under Robin’s watch, the bank made in-sourcing their IT work a priority — which puts them in a favorably competitive position as the world becomes even more digital.
  • I know Daryl Byrd, President & CEO at IBERIABANK Corporation, sees quite a few potential deals cross his desk as he runs the oldest and largest bank headquartered in Louisiana.  The financial holding company operates 280 combined offices and successfully serves a niche commercial and private banking target audience.  Over the past few years, IBERIABANK has been held up as one of the better acquirers in terms of integrating a team/brand into its own — something they will do again with their recently announced acquisition of Old Florida Bancshares.
  • Any time I am able to spend time with Mike Fitzgerald, the Chairman, President & CEO at Bank of Georgetown in Washington, D.C., I come away inspired.  Being a local presence since 2005 — with a great reputation for growing organically — Mike and his team have quickly made this one of the best community banks in the Washington metropolitan area.
  • John Corbett, the President & CEO at CenterState Bank of Florida, runs one of the fastest growing community banks headquartered in the Sunshine State.  Founded in 1999, CenterState Bank has grown to nearly $4 billion in assets.  Just last month, John talked with us about the need to innovate or risk becoming stagnant and losing the ability to compete for exceptional talent.
  • In terms of taking risks, David Brooks, of Independent Bank Group in Texas, can share a story or two.  As I wrote for BankDirector.com in October (Deciding Whether to Sell or Go Public), David was one of the first to take a bank public following the financial crisis, guiding the bank’s 2012 IPO that raised $100 million at 2.2 times tangible book value. The company has announced eight acquisitions since 2010; most notably, with Bank of Houston in a deal that added more than $1 billion in assets to Independent Bank when the deal closed in April.
  • Finally, a tip of my hat to Leon Holschbach, the Vice Chairman, CEO and President of Midland States Bancorp. Leon stands out for his recruitment & retention efforts and has graciously shared how his company develops executives, attracts leadership and approaches compensation in our highly competitive and economically challenging world.

This is by no means a comprehensive list, and I realize there are many, many more leaders who deserve praise and recognition. Click the “+” button on the bottom right of this page to comment on this piece and let me know who else might be recognized for their leadership prowess.

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Does Anyone Want To Work At A Bank?

Admittedly, the question driving today’s title is not the easiest to answer.  Without the training programs once offered, without the cache of an Apple and without the stability of a career path, you might wonder why any smart, ambitious and talented professional would take a job in banking.  Surprised I’d write this from Chicago and Bank Director’s annual Bank Executive & Board Compensation conference?  Read on.  

A sunny day in Chicago
A sunny day in Chicago

As I start to write today’s piece, it strikes me that without the help of LinkedIn, I don’t immediately know a single person my age (37) that works for a traditional bank — let alone operates at an executive level.  This is a HUGE problem for the future when one considers the growing divide in public perceptions of banks with the actual business operations in place.  Look, I’m not throwing stones.  Heck, I would have loved to get into a management training program when I graduated from W&L in 1999.  Its just that almost every big bank that historically trained the “next generation” of bankers had shelved their programs.

While I don’t work directly for a financial institution, I am lucky to spend days like today finding inspiration from bank executives, board members and services providers.  Mostly, these are people who see the banking space as one that does need change, but does not deserve dismissal.  So as the Swissotel starts to fill with “traditional bankers,” I anticipate three big themes; namely, the recruitment, development and compensation of a leadership team and the workforce of the future.

In Terms of Recruitment…

If you subscribe to the idea that “tone from the top” is key for building a culture of success, take heed of our editor’s opinion.  Jack Milligan recently blogged on “The Bank Spot” that “the #1 best practice for a bank’s board of directors is to hire a high performance CEO.”  In his words:

Of all the things that boards do, this might be the most obvious – and yet it’s also the most important. A good CEO works closely with the board to develop a strategy that fits the bank’s market and has the potential to create a high level of profitability. They bring in good talent and do a good job of motivating and leading them. And they have the ability to execute the strategic plan and deliver what they said they will deliver. Having a high performance CEO doesn’t guarantee success, but I think it will be very hard to be a high performing bank without one.

In Terms of Development…

In my mind, having the right leader in place dramatically improves the attractiveness of an institution to potential employees.  Here, I look at what bankers like Ron Samuels and Kent Cleaver are doing in Nashville at Avenue Bank and Mike Fitzgerald at Bank of Georgetown in Washington, D.C.  Creating a culture where one is pushed to contribute to the bank’s growth seems obvious.  But I can tell you, putting people above products and financial profits isn’t always the easiest thing to do (right as it may be).  Developing talented executives takes both patience and confidence.  Indeed, one must be comfortable doing more than simply empowering others to be a team player.  Here, a passage from L. David Marquet’s (a retired Captain in the U.S. Navy) “Turn the Ship Around” bears quotation.  The premise: don’t empower, emancipate.

Emancipation is fundamentally different from empowerment.  With emancipation, we are recognizing the inherent genius, energy and creativity in all people, and allowing those talents to emerge.  We realize that we don’t have the power to give these talents to others, or ’empower’ them to use them, only the power to prevent them from coming out.

It might be easy in a highly regulated environment to see this logic and find excuses to it not applying to banking.  But if a submarine captain can transform one of the worst performing boats into one of the most combat-effective submarines, perhaps these words might be re-read.

In Terms of Compensation…

Not to throw a wet blanket on the last two points, but as our team found in a recent survey, bank boards recognize the need to tie compensation to the performance of the bank in the long term, yet they continue to struggle with how to get the pieces in place to attract and reward the best leaders to meet the institution’s strategic goals.  So I find it particularly interesting that less than half of the banks we surveyed tie CEO pay to the strategic plan or corporate goals, and more than one-quarter of respondents say that CEO compensation is not linked to the performance of the bank.

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I’m checking back in tomorrow from the conference.  If you’re on Twitter and interested in the conversation, feel free to follow @BankDirector, @AlDominick and #BDComp14.

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Bank Mergers and Acquisitions

Before I head out to California to speak at Moss Adams’ annual Community Banking conference, a look at the principal growth strategy for banks: mergers and acquisitions.

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Over the last few years, bank advisers have made the case that consolidation should increase due to significant regulatory burdens, lack of growth in existing markets and aging boards and management teams that are “fatigued” and ready to exit our industry.  So as I see prices to acquire a bank on the rise, it is interesting to note that demand for a deal hasn’t slowed.  According to Raymond James, there were 136 acquisitions announced in the 1st half of the year versus 115 announced in the first half of 2013.  Moreover, total deal value is reported at $6.1 billion versus $4.6 billion in the first half of 2013.

Taking this a step further… While activity in the first quarter of 2014 was only slightly ahead of prior years, the second quarter saw a dramatic increase — 74 deals were announced, which is the highest of any quarter since the credit crisis of 2008.  According to this piece by Crowe Horwath (Will 2014 Be the Year of M&A?), annualized, the total number of announced transactions will exceed 260, which is on par with many of the pre-crisis years of the 2000s.

When is a “Deal Done Right?”

As competition to acquire attractive banks increases, so too does the short and long-term risks incurred by the board of an acquiring institution to find the right fits.  In many ways, the answer to “what makes a good buy” depends on the acquiring board’s intent.  For those looking to consolidate operations, efficiencies should provide immediate benefit and remain sustainable over time.  If the transaction dilutes tangible book value, investors expect that earn back within three to five years. However, some boards may want to transform their business (for instance, a private bank selling to a public bank) and those boards should consider more than just the immediate liquidity afforded shareholders and consider certain cultural issues that might swing a deal from OK to excellent.

My Thoughts on CIT’s Acquisition of OneWest

No two deals are alike — and as the structure of certain deals becomes more complex, bank executives and boards need to prepare for the unexpected.  The sharply increased cost of regulatory compliance might lead some to seek a buyer; others will respond by trying to get bigger through acquisitions so they can spread the costs over a wider base. So as I consider this summer’s CIT deal for OneWest, I see a real shift happening in the environment for M&A.  I see larger regional banks becoming more active in traditional bank M&A following successful rounds of regulatory stress testing and capital reviews.  Also, it appears that buyers are increasingly eyeing deposits, not just assets.  This may be to prepare for an increase in loan demand and a need to position themselves for rising interest rates.

A “Delay of Game” Warning

While M&A activity levels are picking up in the bank space, the amount of time from announcement of acquisition to the closing of the deal has widened significantly in some cases.  As noted by Raymond James earlier this week, “this has been particularly notable for acquirers with assets greater than $10 billion where there have been notable delays in several instances given the greater regulatory scrutiny for banks above this threshold. M&T’s pending acquisition of Hudson City was originally expected to close in 2Q13, and through August 18, 2014, was 722 days from the original announcement on August 27, 2012. This case stands out as a prime example of issues surrounding Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) compliance. A more recent example is the delay in the expected closing of BancorpSouth’s two pending acquisitions (Ouachita Bancshares and Central Community Corporation) that have both been pushed out due to similar issues.”

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When it comes to bank M&A, I sometimes feel like everyone has an opinion.  I’d be interested in your thoughts and welcome your feedback.  To leave a comment on this post, simply click on the white plus sign (within the grey circle at the bottom of this page).  I invite you to follow me on Twitter (@aldominick) where you can publicly or privately share your thoughts with me too.

Aloha Friday!

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Don’t Be Crowdsourced Out Of Business

This is the fifth and final piece in my series on emerging threats to banks from non-financial companies — one that shines a light on the pooling of money from many different people to make an idea happen. Click on any of these titles to read my previous posts: For Banks, the Sky IS Falling, PayPal is Eating Your Bank’s Lunch, The Bank of Facebook and Is WalMart the Next Big Bank.

Next week kicks off Shark Week on the Discovery channel… maybe you’ve been inspired by the endless commercials hyping this programming during Deadliest Catch?  Perhaps so inspired that you’ve come up with a brilliant new idea that just needs some money to get it off the ground!  As a creative type (you watch Shark Week after all), you can’t be bothered with your community bank’s draconian business loan process.  No, you want to start right away and are going all in with a crowdsourcing platform (there are some 700 or so) to rally the capital you need to get your project off the ground.  After all, your “financial backers” on such a platform will not profit financially — unlike those greedy banks that certainly will — while your great idea will flourish thanks to this oh-so-captivated audience that gave you their money with nothing expected in return.

Against this backdrop, banks have no chance, right?

Hyperbole aside, it may be easy to underestimate the impact of crowdfunding on financial institutions, dismissing these “purpose-driven marketplaces” as nothing more than online outposts where wacky ideas attract even wackier investors.  While banks possess inherent competitive advantages in today’s digital world (e.g. large customer bases, vast amounts of customer and transaction data along with the capabilities to enable payments, security, and financing), keep in mind a proverb that “the shark who has eaten cannot swim with the shark that is hungry.”  To this end, let me repurpose the thoughts of  LinkedIn’s co-founder Reid Hoffman, who opines:

“Crowdfunding relies on the wisdom of crowds to identify, fund and unleash entrepreneurial innovation far more efficiently than the credit rules of banks can.”

Having looked at the competitive stances taken by Wal-Mart, Facebook and PayPal in previous posts, let me shift my focus to two of the more well-known crowd funding marketplaces that are “democratizing access to capital, fueling entrepreneurship and innovation, and profoundly changing the face of philanthropy at unprecedented scale and impact.”  Rather than deep dive their business models, let me share, in their words, why people gravitate to their respective sites.

Indiegogo
Founded in 2008 and headquartered in San Francisco, this site was one of the first to offer crowd funding.

Indiegogo is no longer unique; indeed, numerous crowdfunding sites make billions of dollars of capital accessible to upstarts and entrepreneurs alike.  However, it is one of the most established in the space.  As they share “people usually contribute to campaigns for four different reasons: people, passion, participation, and perks. Often, people contribute to support other people—maybe contributing to the campaign of a friend or another inspiring individual. Others contribute because they’re passionate about a mission, such as women’s health or elementary education. Others are motivated by a desire to participate in something big, like building a new community center in their hometown. And often, people contribute to receive perks, the cool things or experiences they get in return for their contributions.”

Kickstarter
A global crowdfunding platform with a stated mission to help bring creative projects to life.

As the company explains, “Mozart, Beethoven, Whitman, Twain, and other artists funded works in similar ways — not just with help from large patrons, but by soliciting money from smaller patrons, often called subscribers. In return for their support, these subscribers might have received an early copy or special edition of the work. Kickstarter is an extension of this model, turbocharged by the web.”

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The reason I wrote today’s piece — and the previous four — is simple.  I am convinced that many community banks have real opportunities to expand what banking means to its individual and business customers by offering services that go beyond their traditional business model.  While many bankers recognize the threats presented by Bank of America to their long-term survival, I am concerned that non-bank competition poses an even greater threat.  Essentially, I think more bank CEOs and boards need to take their conversations beyond just cutting branches and full-time employees and consider how they make the bank more efficient by reinventing how they do things.

Whether you agree or disagree, I’d be interested in your thoughts. Feel free to leave a comment below by clicking on the white plus sign (within the grey circle at the bottom of this page) and I invite you to follow me on Twitter (@aldominick) where you can publicly or privately share your thoughts with me.

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The Growth Conference – Thursday Recap

It is obvious that the most successful banks today have a clear understanding of, and laser-like focus on, their markets, strengths and opportunities.  One big takeaway from the first full day of Bank Director’s Growth Conference (#BDGrow14 via @bankdirector): banking is absolutely an economies of scale business.

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A 2 Minute Recap

 

Creating Revenue Growth

At events like these, our Publisher, Kelsey Weaver, has a habit of saying “well, that’s the elephant in the room” when I least expect it.  Today, I took her quip during a session about the strategic side of growth as her nod to the significant challenges facing most financial institutions — e.g. tepid loan growth, margin compression, higher capital requirements and expense pressure & higher regulatory costs.  While she’s right, I’m feeling encouraged by anecdotes shared by growth-focused bankers considering (or implementing) strategies that create revenue growth from both net interest income and fee-based revenue business lines. Rather than lament the obstacles preventing a business from flourishing, we heard examples of how and why government-guaranteed lending, asset based lending, leasing, trust and wealth management services are contributing to brighter days.

Trending Topics
Overall, the issues I took note of were, in no particular order: bank executives and board members need to fully embrace technology; there is real concern about non-bank competition entering financial services; the board needs to review its offerings based on generational expectations and demands;  and those that fail to marry strategy with execution are doomed. Lastly, Tom Brown noted that Bank of America’s “race to mediocrity” actually makes it an attractive stock to consider.  Who knew being average can pay off?

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To comment on this piece, click on the green circle with the white plus (+) sign on the bottom right.  More tomorrow from the Ritz-Carlton New Orleans.

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Let the Good Times Roll

Checking in from a rain-soaked Reagan National airport, where I think I see the plane I’ll take down to New Orleans taxiing towards its gate.  Yes, it’s “Growth Week” at Bank Director, and I’m heading to the Crescent City to host bank CEOs, Chairmen and board members keen to focus on big picture business issues surrounding growth (not necessarily associated with mergers and acquisitions) and profitability.

New Orleans

A Deep Dive

I realize the phrase “let the good times roll” is most frequently heard during Mardi Gras celebrations in New Orleans; I’m using it to tee up Bank Director’s Growth Conference that kicks off tomorrow morning at the Ritz-Carlton.  Once the lights come up, I’ll be interested to hear:

  • How growth is driving pricing;
  • Why efficiency & productivity are both key elements in positioning a bank to grow; and
  • If “overcapacity” in the US banking industry offers opportunities.

I’m particularly excited for our opening session with Thomas Brown, CEO, Second Curve Capital.  We’ve asked him to help us “set the table” for the next two days of conversations with an outlook for banks across the country by reviewing the current capital market and operating conditions, thereby providing financial context to the next two days’ presentations.  If I don’t cover his remarks in my post tomorrow, you can bet our editor, Jack Milligan, will on his must-read blog The Bank Spot.

A Look Back

Much of last year’s conversation revolved around technology and the need to adapt to a changing marketplace, as well as the importance of creating a unique niche in a competitive landscape dominated by the biggest banks.  Many of our bank speakers at the conference had a more nuanced view of technological change. Richard Hill, the chief retail banking officer for the $19-billion asset Hancock Holding Co. in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, said when he got into banking in the 1970s, the prediction was that checks would go away and branch banking would go away. That clearly didn’t happen, or at least not at the accelerated pace that many predicted. The problem for his bank and for many others is that profits are getting squeezed with low interest rates, and the bank needs to make investments that expand revenue. As he said, “a great challenge we have is figuring all this out.”

Take Our Your Crystal Balls

Let me wrap up by sharing a 2 minute video our team compiled on the “future” of banking.  We played it at our Acquire or Be Acquired conference in January and the perspectives of KPMG’s national banking leader, the CEO of Congressional Bank, etc. are worth a watch and listen.

Laissez les bons temps rouler!

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FI Tip Sheet: First Quarter Favorites

As I come off of a great week in Chicago and Bank Director’s annual Chairman/CEO Peer Exchange, today’s post takes a look back at the first three months of the year.  Yes, certain discussions during this time focused on tepid loan growth, higher capital requirements and expense pressures & higher regulatory costs hitting banks today.  Nonetheless, many more conversations focused on growth, innovation and “what’s working.”  So, to wrap up this week, three points from the past ninety days that inspired me.

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Some of Banking’s Best

To kick off the year, I put together a two-part series on some of the top CEOs in our industry.  Inspired by my coach and an article entitled the “Best CEOs of 2013” that ran on Yahoo Finance, I reached out to a number of colleagues that work for professional services firms to ask their thoughts on the top CEOs at financial institutions — along with why they hold them in such regard.  Part one shared various thoughts on some of the best CEOs in the business today — broken down into three categories: the “biggest banks” with $50Bn+ in assets, those with more than $5Bn but less than $50Bn and finally, those in the $1Bn to $5Bn size range.  Part two built on that piece, highlighting three exceptional CEOs that lead publicly traded banks before shifting to the thoughts and opinions of two very talented colleagues.

Eat or Be Eaten

As the President of Bank Director, I’m lucky to lead one of the industry’s biggest (and dare I say best?) M&A conferences: Acquire or Be Acquired.  Let me first offer up big time props to my many talented colleagues for everything they did to make this year’s the biggest and best yet!  One of the cool new things I did at the Arizona Biltmore this year?  Film a 90 second or less video each evening that summarized the day’s salient points.  As much as I shared big takeaways in written form on this site (e.g. what if I told you that by December 31, 2018, we’d witness a 25% decline in the number of institutions between $500mm and $1Bn), I’m proud of these two videos from the desert that relayed what caught my eyes and attention on two of the three conference days.

 

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The Innovator’s Dilemma

In my role, I find myself talking with Chairmen and CEOs about their strategic plans.  This year, quite a few shared their thoughts for leveraging financial technology to strengthen and/or differentiate their bank.  In a piece I shared at the end of February, I cited Clayton Christensen’s “The Innovator’s Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail.”  His book inspired that Friday’s FI Tip Sheet title – and first point.  If you’re not familiar with his work, the Harvard professor writes about two types of technologies: sustaining and disruptive. Sustaining technologies are those that improve product performance. As he sees it, these are technologies that most large companies are familiar with; technologies that involve improving a product that has an established role in the market.

Most large companies are adept at turning sustaining technology challenges into achievements.  However, large companies have problems dealing with disruptive technologies — an observation that, in my view, does not bode well for many traditionally established banks.  While risk is inherent to banks of all sizes, taking chances on emerging technologies continues to challenge many officers and directors… a theme I anticipate covering in greater detail over the next 90 days.

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Whether this is your first time or 78th time reading About That Ratio, let me say thank you for doing so.  It is a real treat to share, each Friday, three short stories about what I’m hearing, learning and talking about as I travel around the country.  Being that I meet with so many interesting people — be it a bank’s CEO,  board members or executives at professional services firms and product companies — I find it tremendously rewarding to share anecdotes and insights that might interest others.  As always, Aloha Friday!

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The Elephant in the Room

In my opinion, the “elephant in the room” is the fact that 90% of institutions in the U.S. have less than $1Bn of assets… and that many advisers and pundits consider $2Bn to be the “magic number” a bank needs to be at or above in order to be considered viable and competitive.

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Against this backdrop, let me tee up today’s Bank Chairman/CEO Peer Exchange.  Only rarely do we limit the size of an “in-person” event; for this annual gathering, we find that small groups tend to optimize the interaction among the CEOs and Chairmen.  Essentially, the two positions that bear primary responsibility for delivering strong bottom line performance.

In a few hours, I will welcome 39 institutions to the Four Seasons — with 24 being publicly traded. The median asset size is $812M – with the biggest bank here checking in at $15.6Bn in size.  By design, we built this exclusive one and a half day event around a small number of presentations and peer exchange sessions where participants share their thoughts in a private, off-the-record setting.  For example:

  • Growth and profitability – how the top banks do it
  • Building a strong franchise
  • Perspectives on cyber security and digital issues
  • Managing risk to ensure growth
  • Compensation techniques to retain and attract new leaders and key staff

This format allows for in-depth discussions of critical, and sometimes sensitive, issues for just a bank’s CEO, Chairman and/or Lead Director to consider with their contemporaries. To kick things off this morning, we will take a look at various growth stories and strategies… and I’ll be sharing some key takeaways around that topic in the late afternoon/early evening. For more “timely” insight on trends or overarching topics, feel free to follow along on twitter where my username is @aldominick and the hashtag I’ll use is #chair14.

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FI Tip Sheet: The Innovator’s Dilemma

Over the past few years, I have seen significant change within the banking community — much of it defensive or in response to government intervention and oversight.  According to a white paper recently published by McLagan, “a great deal has been said about the excesses and errors of the past; however (sic), the current focus for banks, in particular, must be on the need to innovate or risk becoming stagnant and losing the ability to compete for exceptional talent.”  This morning’s column focuses on the “innovator’s dilemma,” vis-a-vis three questions.

Everything is AwesomeDo We Need Sustainable or Disruptive Technology ?

I have talked with a number of Chairmen and CEOs about their strategic plans that leverage financial technology to strengthen and/or differentiate their bank.  After one recent chat, I went to my bookshelf in search of Clayton Christensen’s “The Innovator’s Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail.”  His book inspired today’s title — and fuels this first question.  Christensen writes about two types of technologies: sustaining and disruptive.  Sustaining technologies are those that improve product performance.  As he sees it, these are technologies that most large companies are familiar with; technologies that involve improving a product that has an established role in the market.  Most large companies are adept at turning sustaining technology challenges into achievements.  However, large companies have problems dealing with disruptive technologies — an observation that, in my view, does not bode well for many traditionally established banks.

“Discovering markets for emerging technologies inherently involves failure, and most individual decision makers find it very difficult to risk backing a project that might fail because the market is not there.”

While risk is inherent to banks of all sizes, taking chances on emerging technologies continues to challenge many officers and directors.  To this end, I thought about the themes explored in Christensen’s book after spending time in Microsoft’s New York City offices last week.  While there, I heard how big banks are generating revenues by acquiring new customers while retaining, up-selling and cross-selling to existing customers.  I left impressed by the various investments being made by the JP Morgans of the banking world, at least in terms of customer relationships and experience management along with analytics and core system modernization.  I do, however, wonder how any entrenched bank can realistically embrace something “uber-esque” (read: disruptive) that could truly transform the industry.

Do We Have the Staff We Need?

Consider the following question from the perspective of a relatively new hire: “I have a great idea for a product or service… who can I talk with?”  A few months ago, Stephen Steinour, the President & Chief Executive Officer at Huntington Bancshares, keynoted Bank Director’s annual Bank Executive & Board Compensation conference and addressed this very thing.  As he shared to an audience of his peers: “the things I assumed from my era of banking are no longer valid.”  Rather than tune out ideas from the field in favor of age and experience, he explained how his $56Bn+ institution re-focused on recruiting “the right” employees for the company they wanted (not necessarily what they had), with a particular emphasis on attracting the millennial generation into banking.  He admitted it’s a challenge heightened by public perception of the industry as one that “takes advantage of people and has benefited from government bailouts.”  Still, he made clear the team they are hiring for reflects a new cultural and staffing model designed to drive real, long-term change.  I wonder how many banks would (or could) be so bold?

Do We Have The Right Business Model?

I’ve heard it said that “forces of change” will compel banks to reinvent their business models.  Take the business model of core retail banking. According to a piece authored by McKinsey (Why U.S. Banks Need a New Business Model), over the past decade, banks continued to invest in branches as a response to free checking and to the rapid growth in consumer borrowing.  But regulations “undermining the assumptions behind free checking and a significant reduction in consumer borrowing have called into question the entire retail model.  In five years, branch banking will probably look fundamentally different as branch layouts, formats, and employee capabilities change.”  Now, I’m not sure banking’s overall business model needs a total overhaul; after all, it still comes back to relationships and reputations.  Nonetheless, many smaller banks appear ripe for a change.  And yes, the question of how they have structured their business is one some are beginning to explore.

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To comment on this piece, click on the green circle with the white plus sign on the bottom right.  Looking ahead, expect a daily post on About That Ratio next week.  I’ll be in Nashville at the Hermitage Hotel for Bank Director’s Bank Board Training Program.  Leading up to, and at, this educational event, I’ll provide an overview on the various issues being covered.  Namely, risk management and auditing issues, compensation, corporate governance, regulation and strategic planning.  Thanks for reading, and Aloha Friday!

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FI Tip Sheet: Some of Banking’s Best Female CEOs

According to a recent report by Catalyst, 46.9% of the U.S. labor force is female; but only 16.9% of Fortune 500 corporate board seats are held by women and 4.6% of Fortune 500 CEOs are women. This got me thinking about the financial sector and why there are so few… along with wondering who are some of the best. Yes, the number of women serving as chief executives is spectacularly small, and the same is true in the banking industry.  Nonetheless, there are a number that standout and what follows in today’s tip sheet are some of them.

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Two CEOs at “Big Brands”
Last month, I wrote how the names and logos of institutions over $50Bn — think M&T with some $83Bn in assets, PNC with $305Bn and US Bancorp with $353Bn – are familiar to most. Leading these massive organizations are some tremendously talented individuals; to today’s focus, Beth Mooney, the CEO of KeyCorp, deserves recognition. The $89 billion Cleveland-based bank operates branches in 14 states from New York to Alaska. Of note, she is the only female CEO running a financial institution included in the S&P 500. So I made immediate note of Ken Usdin’s comments about her success. Ken is the Managing Director of Equity Research for U.S. Banks at Jefferies, and notes “Beth has done a very good job streamlining the organization, improving the business model in retail banking and tightening the focus and integration of Key’s various commercial banking businesses.”

Like Beth, Barbara Yastine, the Chief Executive Officer and President of Ally Bank deserves praise for the role she’s played since assuming the post in May of 2012. Consider that Ally Bank, the direct banking subsidiary of Ally Financial Inc., announced this past year it had crossed the $40 billion threshold in deposits from retail customers.  Quite an accomplishment given its parent company, the former GMAC, was described in an American Banker piece as “a poster child of the financial crisis and could have buckled under the weight of its bad loans without a bailout.” In addition to a portfolio of straightforward products, Ally Bank has introduced popular online and mobile banking tools backed by a robust customer service platform under her care and guidance.

Four CEOs at Strong Community Banks
A dynamo in her own right, Cathy Nash, the former President and CEO at Citizens Republic Bancorp (who orchestrated a great merger deal with FirstMerit last year) pointed me towards Jean Hale of Community Trust Bancorp in Kentucky. Ms. Hale has been CEO since July of 1999 and guides the NASDAQ-listed company with total assets at $3.6 billion.

From the Commonwealth of Kentucky let me move to my first home state of Massachusetts. There, you will find Dorothy Savarese, the president and CEO of The Cape Cod Five Cents Savings Bank, leading 400 employees while presiding over an institution with $2.3Bn in assets. Serving the community since 1855, this is one of those bank logos I always get excited to see come summer vacation.

Separately, I also hear that Melanie Dressel, President and CEO, Columbia Banking System out of Tacoma, Washington, is a female CEO to watch. With the bank’s acquisition of West Coast in 2012, this is one of the largest community banks in the Pacific Northwest: 141 banking offices, including 80 branches in Washington State and 61 branches in Oregon.

Finally, Scott Winslow at RFi applauded Julie Thurlow at Reading Co-op Bank in Massachusetts as “smart, gracious and very focused on leading her team of folks to the right decisions for the bank and her community. One of the sharper CEOs I have met in the community banking world.”

Four I Want to Learn More About
As I prepared for today’s piece, I looked at various analyst reports, stories authored by our team, performance rankings and research notes. I took note of four CEOs — and their institutions — that I am curious to learn more about. For example, Sheila Mathews at Four Corners Community Bank. I also want to learn more about the work Peyton Patterson is doing up in Connecticut as Bankwell’s CEO. Finally, Bank Director’s own CEO, Joan Susie (a woman herself), told me that Diane Dewbrey at Foundation Bank in Bellevue, WA is really smart and interesting and that Laurie Stewart, president and CEO of Sound Community Bank in Seattle, is impressive.

Even with all this snow on the ground, let me close with a very warm Aloha Friday!

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FI Tip Sheet: The Top Women in Banking?

Clearly, there aren’t many female CEOs of major corporations.  According to Spencer Stuart, an executive search firm, the number of women serving as the CEO of an S&P 500 company increased to 22 in 2013. Nonetheless, this represents a mere 4.5% of the companies that comprise the index.  I share this statistic as a preface to this morning’s post, one that asks for your help and feedback on “the best” female CEOs in banking today.

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Background

Last month, inspired by a piece that ran on Yahoo Finance (“the Best CEOs of 2013“), I reached out to a number of colleagues that work for professional services firms to ask their thoughts on the top CEOs at financial institutions — along with why they hold them in such regard.  I subsequently shared their thoughts (along with mine) on some of the best CEOs in the business today — broken down into three categories: the “biggest banks” with $50Bn+ in assets, those with more than $5Bn but less than $50Bn and finally, those in the $1Bn to $5Bn size range.

A request for help

While the CEOs I wrote about certainly deserved the recognition, noticeably absent on each list: women.  Yes, I realize the vast majority of CEOs in banking today are male; however, I am keen to identify those female executives at financial institutions that are truly the best in banking.  So here’s the deal.  I’d like your thoughts on the top female CEOs — regardless of their financial institution’s size — and a sentence or two that provides color and context as to why you think so. This can be shared publicly with a comment below or tweet to me at @aldominick. It can be shared directly via email adominick@bankdirector.com or with a message thru LinkedIn.

What will come of this

Next week, I’ll post a piece on the top female CEOs on this site. FWIW, I am happy to attribute comments to an individual or keep things anonymous.

Thanks, and Aloha Friday!